Summary
Commemorative memorial to the Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) comprising a Baroque arch of ashlar, set into a brick backing of 2013.
Reasons for Designation
The Royal Army Service Corps Memorial Arch is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: a handsome stone Baroque memorial arch.
* Military historical interest: for commemorating not only the fallen of the Royal Army Service Corps since 1794, but also the evolution of the regiment and its association with General Sir Redvers Buller.
* Historic interest: visually distinctive reference for those who serve or have served in the Royal Army Service Corps embracing the tradition of service and the regimental bond.
History
In 1852, 8000 acres of low cost heath at Aldershot were purchased as the site of the first permanent training ground for the Army, large enough to run regular summer exercises for 10 to 12 battalions at one time. Here the new railways could provide easy access to London, Dover and the main naval arsenals at Chatham, Portsmouth and Plymouth. In February 1854 work had started on the construction of the barracks, and by 1856 North and South Camps, (later to become Stanhope and Marlborough Lines), consisting of regular grids of wooden huts, had been erected. Permanent barracks, named the Wellington Lines, were built between September 1854 and 1859. The lack of a wall around the barracks, formerly considered necessary for separateness and security, was an innovation and emphasised the difference between Aldershot and previous barracks, with their civil policing role. Aldershot was the first of the large-scale camps, followed by Colchester and Shorncliffe, and it included some of the earliest examples of a garrison church, library and gymnasium. Today there are only isolated buildings, and the overall plan of the camp has been lost to post-war redevelopment.
Buller Barracks was constructed in 1890-95 and named after General Sir Redvers Buller (1839-1908), known as the 'father' of the Royal Army Service Corps (now incorporated into the Royal Logistics Corps). He notably served in South Africa during the Zulu War 1879 where he won the Victoria Cross. He was General Officer commanding at Aldershot from 1898 to 1899 and again in 1900. Buller Barracks was designed to house the Army Service Corps, which later became the Royal Corps of Transport. It was demolished in 1965, but the new Buller Barracks was opened in 1970 when the memorial was moved from the old barracks to the new site. There is a war memorial identified in the Buller Barracks (RASC) area, facing Mandora Road, on the 1935 O.S. map, and it may be that the arch dates from this time. The marble inset plaque, however, refers to both the First World War and the Second World War fallen, in the same recessed and painting letter, indicating that at least the marble plaque post-dates the Second World War. In 2013 the memorial arch was moved to its current location in the grounds of the Garrison Church of St Michael and St George on Queens Avenue.
Details
The memorial comprises a Baroque blind triumphal arch of square pink and grey stone ashlar sandstone flanked by pilasters with panelled shafts. Within the arch is a painted insignia of the RASC, set above a recessed marble panel with shouldered architrave bearing a cross of St John, as well as the main inscription dedicated to the officers and men of the Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) who laid down their lives in both World Wars. This reads:
'IN MEMORY OF 280 OFFICERS AND 8187 WOs. NCOs AND MEN OF THE ROYAL ARMY SERVICE CORPS WHO LAID DOWN THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR COUNTRY DURING THE GREAT WAR 1914-1919'
'ALSO IN MEMORY OF 286 OFFICERS AND 8871 WOs. NCOs AND MEN OF THE ROYAL ARMY SERVICE CORPS WHO LAID DOWN THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR COUNTRY DURING THE WAR 1939-1945'
A second inscription lies below on a chest tomb, and is dedicated to the officers and soldiers of The Royal Corps of Transport who have died on campaign since the founding of The Royal Waggoners in 1794. This reads:
'IN MEMORY OF THOSE OFFICERS AND SOLDIERS OF THE ROYAL CORPS OF TRANSPORT AND THEIR PREDECESSORS WHO HAVE DIED IN OTHER WARS OR CAMPAIGNS SINCE THE FOUNDING OF THE ROYAL WAGGONERS ON 7TH MARCH 1794.'
The lettering of each panel is inset and painted.
The brick backing is not of special interest.
This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 06/02/2015
(Formerly listed as Royal Army Service Corps Memorial Arch, Mandora Road, Aldershot)
This List entry has been amended to add the source for War Memorials Register. This source was not used in the compilation of this List entry but is added here as a guide for further reading, 6 December 2016.
